Now that the UK has left the European Union (EU) could there be a benefit to offering and promoting products that have been made in the UK? 

Whether you voted to ‘remain’ or ‘leave’ in the EU referendum, the 2016 result now seems quite a long time ago. And there seems to be a new dynamic affecting product choice in the UK. With products coming from the EU due to face the full barrage of UK customs inspections and paperwork scrutiny, there is real appeal for products that circumvent these potential delays or obstructions.

Delays and paperwork issues aside. There now seems to be a growing movement to select and even favour UK-made products. Being part of ‘Team UK’ and ready to support UK-farmers, -businesses -manufacturers and the employees of UK businesses has the potential to be seen as a positive step. Wherever you’re located in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland (particularly in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic) there’s a real collective effort being made to back the UK. It seems the Union Jack graphic and ‘made in the UK’ proudly displayed on a product now has real appeal – who ever thought ‘Cool Britannia’ could ever make a comeback?

UK-manufactured product appeal

The appeal of UK-manufactured product is something we are particularly excited about. It’s something we as a UK manufacturer are keen to embrace. We too are actively trying to source more of our products from UK suppliers. 

For those who don’t already know us, we make all of our meltblown absorbent spill control pads and rolls right here in the UK – in Greater Manchester. We have done since the meltblown line was set up in 2015. 

Liquid Safety Solutions by FyterTech Nonwovens is a global business and comprises of three distinct divisions: Spill Control, Filtration and Health & Hygiene. You might already be familiar with our Lubetech brand of absorbents and spill control products which were supplied to you under our previous name of NPS.

We’re very proud of our ‘in-demand’ high quality meltblown spill control products. Our consistently high-quality meltblown pads and rolls are a result of rigorous quality control processes and a highly skilled team of employees, who really do take a great deal of pride in their work.

The factors influencing choice

Could offering UK-made products about to become an additional reason for customers to buy from you rather than from a competitor? More often than not price is the deciding factor. So, products manufactured in the UK, (unless from a highly automated large volume process) can carry an increased price differential. But what if other factors started to influence the choice? Once quality, availability and perhaps even a patriotic sense of ‘helping-out’ are added into the equation – could this influence buying behaviour?

As long as the price differential isn’t that great, the attractions of offering UK-made meltblown spill control are considerable. And that attraction is also appealing for distributors too. Offering UK-made meltblown absorbents could be a point of difference that can be actively marketed by spill control product distributors. At FyterTech Nonwowens Ltd. we’ve noticed a significant uplift in orders of meltblown spill control from like-minded customers based in the UK, and from further afield too. 

While some might point an accusing finger, that promoting ‘made-in-the-UK’ products is xenophobic, it’s worth considering what the ‘Cool Britannia’ movement did for demand of UK products and services in the 1990’s. With the UK currently negotiating multiple trade deals across the globe, the demand needn’t be restricted to a home-grown market either.

They say history repeats itself – wouldn’t it be ironic if buyers of meltblown spill control made in Manchester were about to become… (with apologies to Oasis) ‘mad for it’!